Questioning

Even as Li Xuanfeng taunted him out loud, he was secretly on guard. Flipping five talismans into his hand, he drew his bow, gathered his qi, and released his breath with a sharp shout. A brilliant burst of golden light shot toward Yu Xiaogui's palm, while Li Xuanfeng himself channeled the River-Crossing Torrent Steps, abruptly putting distance between them. The gulf between Foundation Establishment and Qi Refinement was simply too vast. Yu Xiaogui shattered the golden light with a single strike of his palm. Though Li Xuanfeng had attained the seventh level of Qi Refinement, was fully prepared, and had the aid of a third-rank movement technique, he had only barely evaded the blow. Scraped by the ferocious wind of the palm strike, his face turned pale. This was even with the empowerment of talisman qi; had an ordinary Qi Refinement cultivator taken that blow, they would surely have coughed up blood and been sent flying. Having dodged the attack, Li Xuanfeng regulated his breathing slightly, feeling a faint pang of regret. He had hoped to test this man's immortal foundation for Li Tongya, but he had not expected Yu Xiaogui to be so cautious as to hold back even with rage flaring in his chest. Yu Xiaogui, for his part, had lost massive face at having his attack dodged by a mere Qi Refinement cultivator. Seeing that Li Xuanfeng was only in his thirties yet already at the seventh level of Qi Refinement, murder surged in his heart. Flipping his hand, he unleashed another palm strike as white spiritual glow surged, barking: "Then allow me to teach you a lesson in Li Tongya's stead, junior!" Yu Xiaogui's palms turned like white jade, descending out of thin air. Yet Li Xuanfeng showed no trace of fear, simply standing his ground. Far from being shocked or enraged, Yu Xiaogui grew wary instead—and sure enough, he saw a streak of sword qi drift up from below. Bright and blindingly white, as vast as a ship's sail, it drove straight toward his palms. "Li Chijing is indeed here!" In an instant, alarm bells rang loudly in Yu Xiaogui's mind. His hairs stood on end in utter terror. He immediately pulled back his palms to defend, producing two talismans that formed two thick barriers of white light. Magic power surged through his body with majestic grandeur, manifesting numerous profound markings—he had boldly activated his immortal foundation. He even shouted: "Li Chijing! You had better think this through!" The sword qi crashed forward with ferocious momentum, detonating against the light barrier with a resounding clang. Yet it only flickered the outermost barrier to the brink of vanishing before dissolving into a shower of clear water that rained down upon the woods. Terror had turned Yu Xiaogui's eyes bloodshot. Seeing the outcome, he hastily touched his neck; only after ensuring it was intact did he exhale a long breath, lingering fear still gripping his heart. Silence briefly fell between heaven and earth while those below trembled in fear. Only then did a grey-robed figure manifest in midair. Broad-shouldered with lean cheeks, his eyes rested quietly on Yu Xiaogui before him. Lightly flicking his sleeve, he rested his left hand on his sword and said with a smile: "This child lost his father early and was raised by me. His temper may be a bit unruly, but..." He raised his left hand slightly, and the dharma sword at his waist slid an inch from its sheath on its own, snow-white and blinding, radiance swirling across the blade. Li Tongya said softly: "...it is not for you to teach him a lesson, Daoist friend!" Yu Xiaogui stood dazed for several breaths before stammering in disbelief: "Not Li Chijing... How can this be! Li Tongya... you've established your foundation!" Li Tongya's aura burst forth powerfully, prompting instant cheers from the armored soldiers and cultivators below. They had already suspected as much when Li Tongya broke the formation with a single sword strike, and now that it was fully confirmed, each was thoroughly shaken, murmuring in awe. "Mere luck," Li Tongya replied coldly. Yu Xiaogui's expression darkened, and he demanded sharply: "Three years... Not even three years! Did Li Chijing give you some miraculous elixir or precious herb... or some wondrous technique and divine ability?!" Now that matters had reached this point, all pretense of civility between the two families was shattered. There was no need for courtesy; the two stood locked in tense opposition. Li Tongya smiled faintly while Yu Xiaogui held back his wrath. As they hung in stalemate in the sky, the tension mounting to a knife's edge, a hearty laugh suddenly rang out. "Hahahaha!" A fair-faced man flew up on the wind from below. Slender of frame, his robes fluttered as he held a fan, cupping his hands toward Yu Xiaogui and Li Tongya. "I am Wu Shaoyun of the Wu clan of Commandery South. Greetings to you both!" This Wu Shaoyun was also at the early Foundation Establishment stage. As he offered his greetings, the expressions of both Li Tongya and Yu Xiaogui softened, and they nodded in return. Then, with great fanfare, Wu Shaoyun declared: "I have come uninvited today because there is a matter I must ask Brother Tongya." The moment those words were spoken, Li Tongya knew the man had not come with good intentions. Unfazed, he replied: "Please speak, Brother Shaoyun!" Wu Shaoyun chuckled coldly and replied: "Our clan ancestor had a fifth-generation granddaughter who was my own daughter. She once traveled Lake Wangyue and never returned over a decade ago. Back then, I was merely a Qi Refinement cultivator, anxious beyond measure. I made numerous trips back and forth across the lake, yet never found any trace of her." Pausing briefly, his gaze sharpened as he continued: "Later, after I broke through to Foundation Establishment, I gained a spiritual sense and traced the events back multiple times, discovering that she died on your Li family's territory. Would Brother Tongya happen to know anything of this?" Li Tongya only needed a moment to recall. He remembered the greedy female cultivator who had murdered someone for treasure at the market all those years ago, only to be intercepted by him. Li Tongya had tried to reason with her, but she insisted on resisting to the bitter end; though he was stronger than her, suppressing her non-lethally had proved difficult, so he had slain her. Even knowing full well who she was, Li Tongya merely narrowed his eyes and said in a low voice: "I know nothing of it. Does Brother Shaoyun know the exact date?" Relying on the effect of his unique immortal foundation and special talismans, Wu Shaoyun already knew that the person who killed the Wu daughter had been at roughly the fourth or fifth level of Qi Refinement, surnamed Wan. There was no way that person could have reached Foundation Establishment in just over a decade, so in his heart he was convinced it was not Li Tongya. Even so, he secretly weighed his options: 'I already promised Xiaogui I would come support him, so I cannot simply let this drop too easily. Yet the Li family has a sword immortal backing them. Good friends as Xiaogui and I may be, I cannot entangle myself so deeply in the struggle between the Li and Yu families that I end up bringing ruin upon my own clan.' Torn in conflict and caught in a dilemma, Wu Shaoyun could only answer: "At the time the Lake Wangyue market fell." Hearing this, Li Tongya shook his head and replied: "Since Fellow Daoist knows it was when the Lake Wangyue market fell, chaos reigned everywhere that day. People slaughtered one another across Lake Central Islet, and blood flowed like rivers. It is only natural that someone might perish amidst it all. Perhaps your clan's daughter was tempted by treasures and refused to let go, costing her life as a result!" Wu Shaoyun instantly flared up in agitation and shouted: "Impossible! My daughter was delicate and sweet—she would not even step on an ant! How could she have waded into such muddy waters to kill and rob others for treasure?!" Li Tongya was utterly speechless. Others might have been fooled, but he had taken that female cultivator's storage bag. The numerous magical artifacts inside were smeared with blood, the robes stripped from others were still dripping red, and even the pill furnace was drenched in blood. How could she have been an innocent soul? What was more, the female cultivator had struck with practiced precision, every move aiming to kill. She had clearly slaughtered many before, making it all the more impossible that she was anything like Wu Shaoyun claimed. Just as he was about to respond, Yu Xiaogui unexpectedly piped up from the side, cold and abrupt: "Brother Tongya speaks with such certainty, as if he witnessed it with his own eyes. Perhaps Brother Tongya did it himself!" Before Wu Shaoyun could say a word, Li Tongya had already turned his head to look at Yu Xiaogui. His expression turned faintly cold, and he said in a deep voice: "Daoist friend, our two families have feuded for years—in the open and in the dark, both you and I know it well. Since the moment is ripe today, why don't you and I settle it with a battle!"